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Can sound heal?

"The knower of the mystery of sound knows the mystery of the whole universe." -Hazrat Inayat Khan

Sound has been used as a healing
modality since prehistoric times when shamans used chanting and drumming in their healing rituals. The Aboriginal peoples of Australia have used the didgeridoo as a healing device for 40 000 years.

Ancient Egyptians, since 4000 BC, sang vowel sounds that they believed were sacred, so sacred that they omitted vowels in their written hieroglyphs. In addition, a type of rattling instrument called a 'sistrum' was used by priestesses and the ultrasound produced was invaluable for healing. This has has been proved more recently with ultrasound machines being used to heal all types of tissue, including broken bones.In Ancient Greece, Pythagoras (500 BC) taught in his Mystery School that the flute and lyre were valuable healing instruments.

In the East, bronze Tibetan 'singing bowls' have, according to researcher Joseph Feinstein, been used for possibly 3000 years. These bowls are still very much in use for healing and meditation.The bowls are tapped with a padded mallet and also the rim may be stroked to produce a unique continuous vibration and harmonic overtones. Listen to the bowls in the clip below as it is difficult to describe the effect in words.

Gregorian chanting developed in the West from the 10th century AD and was used for healing in cathedrals and churches. The stained glass panels provided an added benefit as the colour healing component.

In India, Vedic mantras such as the drawn out vowel sound "Om" have been used for healing and meditation for centuries.

There are without doubt many more instances of sound healing ancient practices that I have not listed. Many of those I have discussed have survived and are now being used in the west by healing practitioners.

But how does sound actually heal?The theory behind it is that all matter is a form of energy and all energy vibrates (has a frequency and thus emits sound). We are healthy when our bodies vibrate at the right frequency. External sound frequencies can change our DNA and can correct any frequencies in sick parts of our bodies. Have a listen to the clip below for research done by Russians on DNA and sound experiments.

One needs to be very careful however to use the correct frequency with any of these sound healing modalities - one has to wonder whether some modern music can change our DNA to our, and society's, detriment. Perhaps we get sick listening to the wrong sounds.